Categories: OLD Media Moves

Bartiromo on going to the NYSE floor

CNBC anchor Maria Bartiromo, who is currently promoting her new book, talked with Moira Forbes of ForbesWoman about her career.

Here is an excerpt:

Moira Forbes: What was the greatest challenge for you when you entered business journalism, and is there still undo scrutiny of women in these roles?

Maria Bartiromo: The playing field has changed quite a bit. When I first brought a camera with me down to the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, no one had ever done that. Being the first person to have a camera and get into the inner sanctum of this world was a challenge. Today, it’s very different. I’m happy to have helped pioneer and made it easier for other women.

You go down on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange today, and there are a number of women reporting. In business journalism in general, more women are continuing to rise and emerge. It’s changing, but it wasn’t always easy.

What exactly wasn’t always easy?

When I first got down to the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, a lot of people didn’t want me there. I remember one day when I went over to the GE post, hoping to introduce Jack Welch–then-CEO of GE and my boss’ boss–to the market maker. This one guy, standing at the post, three times my age, said, “Run along! You will not be here! This post is not going to go on your little TV show! Don’t even think about coming back here again!”